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flmackintosh

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Aug 20, 2012
2
0
I baby my MacBook, but it was on the receiving end of a spritz of perfume my friend thought I would like, and although there is no damage to the display, there are moisture dots over the rest of the computer that will not come off. Does anyone have any tips on how to remove these without damaging the surface further?
 

ixodes

macrumors 601
Jan 11, 2012
4,429
3
Pacific Coast, USA
The first thing I would try is to lift the offending chemical (perfume) by using a clean, dry microfiber cloth. Before you cast off this idea as looney :) bear with me.

If the cloth is spread across the surface & then weighted down a bit with a larger folded towel, you'd be surprised at the absorption qualities of microfiber. But it's important that you leave it in place for about an hour since it's wicking qualities take some time to work.

Now that the first step is done we'll proceed.

Buy a box of Mr Clean Magic Erasers. Get the white "extra strength" (or some labeling to that effect). Run some warm tap water, get the eraser completely wet, then squeeze out the excess still it stops dripping.

Gently rub it over the affected surfaces. If you take your time you'll be extremely pleased with the results. No worries about scratches or abrasions either. I use this method on the rather "rubbery" soft texture of my ThinkPads.

It truly works like a miracle. The lid on a T series ThinkPad is easily marked because of the soft touch, rubbery like coating. And yet when cleaned as described above, it's returned to like new, matte finish.

I discovered this method when a careless friend picked up my ThinkPad right after applying her hand cream. It left big white stains. Thinking I had nothing to lose, I went after it aggressively with the heavily dampened Magic Eraser. I was both shocked, and thrilled with the incredibly perfect result.

In fact the lid looks better than the day it was unboxed. As a result, I've begun using this method as part of my normal weekly laptop cleaning. Works perfectly on my aluminum MBP's & MBA's too.
 

flmackintosh

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Aug 20, 2012
2
0
Thank you! I live in the UK so am not sure if I can get hold of what you suggested, but I'll have a look. So, it won't leave a mark even though the surface is high-shine?
 

francis1983

macrumors newbie
Sep 10, 2012
1
0
Well you can consult your tech support to do the operation for you.You can also search for details about perfumes on:eek:line.
 

Orange Furball

macrumors 65816
May 18, 2012
1,325
6
Scranton, PA, USA
Thank you! I live in the UK so am not sure if I can get hold of what you suggested, but I'll have a look. So, it won't leave a mark even though the surface is high-shine?

A Magic Eraser is like very fine sandpaper. I would stick with distilled water and microfiber cloths. I use ones made for chalkboards as they are large and high quality.
 
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